On TikTok, hundreds of Internet users say that the office air makes them feel worse throughout the day. Dermatologists point to much more mundane causes.
A theory that has gone viral on TikTok claims that office air degrades our physical appearance throughout the day. Baptized “Office Air Theory” or “the office air theory”she has convinced many Internet users, who publish videos comparing their faces in the morning and in the evening after work.
‘Office air’ could be making you ugly, experts warn – as ragged workers sound off after viral TikTok post https://t.co/wQWDrsnviT pic.twitter.com/zY1Ly7H00d
— New York Post (@nypost) March 26, 2026
Hundreds of women, mostly in the United States, film themselves throughout the day at work, claiming that the air makes them ugly. Like Noa Donlan, the influencer who launched this theory, some Internet users are convinced that the office air makes them ugly. “My lip gloss is clumpy, my hair is frizzy, my skin is dry and impure”testifies one of them. “I take two years every 30 minutes”adds another TikTok user.
Natural evolutions
But for dermatologist Zakia Rahman, interviewed by the HuffPostthese changes are above all natural. The skin changes throughout the day under the influence of the circadian rhythm. Sebum increases, skin becomes brighter, and hormonal fluctuations affect the radiance of the complexion.
His colleague Malte Schmelter, questioned by the New York Postputs forward other explanations. Air conditioning, omnipresent in offices, dries out the skin and can cause slight fine lines to appear. In itself, it is mainly the office lifestyle, particularly stress and coffee, which explains why we feel less good about ourselves at the end of the day.
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